There is a Fisherman’s Wharf in every coastal city, but Richmond’s Steveston Fisherman’s Wharf has a different atmosphere to it. Once you are there, it would seem like you have stepped through the passage of time and returned to the glorious 1900’s.
At the end of the seemingly timeless wooden dock, stands a sign – the only sign that etched down the prosperous history of this land. The sign was a marker that fractured the perception of time separating the modern cafés, seafood restaurants and the antiquated buildings behind it.
A hundred years ago, Steveston Village was one of the most productive fishery and cannery sites in Western Canada. Countless thriving canneries and shipyards, established there, pushed the local economy to the peak. To name one, the Imperial Cannery was most incredible. Announced as the largest cannery in the British Empire, it endured through the highs and lows and operated over a century, from 1893 to 1992.
As you read through the introductions and articles of their prideful history, you could almost see the workers and fishermen hustling and bustling through the village, carrying their catch of the day to the cannery. The imagery is so vivid, that it seems like their very breath were transposed into every atom of the ancient wharf.
But as the workers and fishermen slowly disappear, a fundamental truth is revealed, nothing lasts forever. Along with the demise of the fishing industry, the illustrious era turned into the very pages of history books.
Businesses of the new are now operating in these gray-haired buildings, ostensibly staking its claim. But the history and pride of the old will forever be intact.
As I have said, this was a journey through the fabric of space and time. As you start walking out the vicinity of Steveston Village, and the cries of the fish market below fades away, all you can see now are the cafés and restaurants, filled with people conversing about yesterday’s happenings. If you never stood still to read the sign and digest the splendor of antiquity, this place will mean nothing more to you than the next city’s wharf. But in fact, Steveston Fisherman’s Wharf, is a continuum of pride and glory, constructed by the workers and fishermen who silently walked away.
Written by Rico East
Edited by Mike West
EMW Inc. 